Smile. Smile again. It's just a normal day for Labour's happy family of Wes, Keir and Rachel

The show must go on. Less than 48 hours after the government's welfare bill was left in tatters and a day after Rachel Reeves breaking down in tears at prime minister's questions had caused falls in the financial markets, Keir Starmer, his chancellor and the health secretary were keen to present a clean slate.

- John Crace

Everything was totally normal. Couldn't be more normal. This had been just another ordinary week in Westminster. Everyone cries during PMQs at some stage in their career. The kind of thing that happens all the time. So normal that Keir, Rachel and Wes Streeting had come mob-handed to make the same announcement. What could be more normal than that? Denial will get you a long way in politics.

First, though, Starmer had popped up on the Chris Evans show on Virgin Radio to tell listeners how much he admired Reeves and how central she was to the Labour project. He and the chancellor were in lockstep. She was irreplaceable. He walked in her shadow.